A good report

Big day today for the Molls. School pictures came back and we had our winter quarter parent-teacher conference. After a rocky transition, it seems like Molly has adjusted well to the Penguins class and has been having lots of fun. She's been singing, dancing, learning new words (add "apple" to the list!), participating in circle time, enjoying the various art projects, reading, eating, and napping like a champ. All without the pacifier!

16 months and proud of it

She's very into having fun right now and loves being chased, lifted, bounced, or turned upside down. We've also had great success with youtube. The chicken dance is a big hit (Molly can even do the moves) as well as a song called "We Are the Dinosaurs." She likes to march.

Molly still doesn't like when the boys try to hug her...and they ALL try to hug her. But I can live with that :) My girl just needs her space!

Little penguins

What I'm thankful for

Life is pretty good right now, and I have much to be thankful for this holiday season. At the top of the list, obviously, are Jason and Molly. We're a happy little family unit, made even happier by the purchase of the Medium Green Egg smoker, which helped us make the best Thanksgiving turkey we've ever had.

Jason, Molls, and the Egg

Of course I'm also thankful for my 2 beautiful sisters and that they are both living in/near Chicago. It makes it easy for my parents (who I am also thankful for) to come visit and see all of us at once.

Sus, B, Mom, Molly, and Me

Now that we're finished with Thanksgiving...time to get in the Christmas spirit :) The stockings are hung by the chimney, with care, and we're picking up the tree tomorrow. Woo hoo! 

All business...

Jason and I finally decided it was time to snip the party in the back of Molly's hair and get rid of the mullet once and for all. Unfortunately, cutting a toddler's hair is much more difficult than expected. Molly no longer has a tail, but one side is longer than the other, and there are a couple of chunks in the back that look like they were hacked off at random. That's because they were. Poor kid... Now I know why children's hair salons like Snippets are in business!

Yes, I'm still cute

No more mullet!

What's cooking?

With my family, Thanksgiving is all about the sides. Cornbread, stuffing, cranberries, potatoes, green bean casserole. Need I go on? We are also pretty particular about our pies. Mocha pie and apple pie are served every Thanksgiving. No pumpkin. And if you put a piece of cheese on your pie, my mom will give you a dirty look.

Because no one is really all that into the bird, Jason and I have spent the last few years experimenting. We've had some highs (beer can chicken) and some lows (turducken), but every year has been fun trying out a new recipe. Except, of course, the year I had the flu.

This Thanksgiving, in honor of our obsession with Top Chef, we're going to try a Rick Bayless recipe -- Mesquite-smoked grilled turkey with red chile adobo sauce (see page 2 of this article). Why not? It can't be worse than the turducken. And by cooking the turkey on the grill, it frees up the oven for our delicious sides :) Wish us luck!

National Blog Posting Month

I guess November is National Blog Posting Month (NaBloPoMo) and I should be writing a post a day. Ack! Missed the boat on that one. I promise to do it next year. Or maybe I'll just do it next month instead. My own personal Blog Posting Month :)

If you follow this blog, you'll know that I usually only manage one or two posts a week, and that lately, I've basically just been posting pictures of Molly. Family members are probably okay with that, but I feel like I should be writing more. I want to write more.

Now that I have tendinitis in my wrist, I have fewer excuses for not blogging. I can't play tennis (though I could still go to the gym...). I can't knit. So I might as well update my blog! Jason is traveling the next couple of days, so look forward to new posts about Top Chef, football, and whatever else pops in my head after Molly goes to bed.

Speaking of the Molls, I'll leave you with this:

The Vipper of Vip, wearing a cape of her own design, at Chloe's 3rd birthday party

Snuggle up

I've never been a big snuggler. Ask my mother. Ask my husband. But now that I have a 1-year-old in fleece pajamas, my world has changed. How could I not love cuddling up with this adorable little girl??

Happiness is a warm baby

Second cousins

While I was getting ready with Lauren and the other bridesmaids on Saturday, Jason took Molly out for ice cream (Graeter's!) and then over to play with her cousin Ella. Well, technically, they are second cousins if I can trust the 'cousin chart' and kinship definitions on Wikipedia :) I think I probably can.

I loved Emily's email about the weekend:

Here are some of the pictures of Ella and Molly together from Saturday. They really enjoyed playing together. And we got the biggest kick out of watching them eat together. Ella had to eat everything that Molly ate and served the same way as Molly was served. It was great to watch!

-Emily

P.S. I think Molly needs a dog!

First taste of the good stuff

Ella, Molly, and Uncle Neal in the sandbox

Competitive toddler eating -- who can take down the most peas?

Adorable times two

Chillin' with Sadie and Uncle Neal

Snuggling with Sadie and Uncle Neal :) 

More fun times with Ella  and one of the dogs...probably Sadie (Molly's favorite)

Beautiful bride

I can't believe it -- all of my close friends from high school are married! Last weekend was Lauren's wedding in Cincinnati. We wined and dined on the Kentucky side of the river on Fri night and then danced the night away at Hyde Park Country Club on Sat.

Lauren (and her mom, and probably Steve) put in so much work making every detail of the wedding absolutely perfect. The flowers were gorgeous, the food was delicious, and the band was awesome. I'm pissed I forgot to bring home a jar of the homemade pepper jam they had as a wedding favor. Oh well!

Anyway, it was a wonderful wedding and I'm so happy I got to be part of it!

Rehearsal dinner on the river

Dana and LT

Getting hitched! At St Xavier in Cincinnati, OH

Linds and Dana -- looking lovely. I had a pretty purple dress too, but no pictures to prove it!